Exodus 13:17-18 states:
“Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea.
We find the children of Israel leaving Egypt after the tenth plague: death of the firstborn of all who did not have the blood of the lamb on their doorposts. What a night that was, it was one of many turning points in Israel’s history. The Egyptians could not wait to get the Israelites to leave their land that the Egyptians gave articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing (Exodus 12:33-36) – anything the Israelites asked; they just wanted them out. It is recorded that God called Moses and Aaron the same night all of Egypt cried because of the death of all their firstborns, including their animals and told them it was time to go. So the Israelites left Egypt with the favor of God. One of the first requests God had for the Israelites once they were out of Egypt was to consecrate their firstborn (Exodus 13:1-2). In other words, God was telling the Israelites to honor God with what God had blessed them with, the lives of their own firstborn. This is an important lesson for us to remember, when God blesses, we should remember and give back to honor that blessing.
So we have the Israelites out of Egypt with the riches of the Egyptian. Those of you who are familiar with the account, have you ever wondered what the Israelites were going to do with all that silver and gold? We do know it was currency, so maybe it was God’s intervention to give the Israelites everything they needed for their journey. However, the account tells us they used it for other purposes (I will speak about in a later installment).
As the Israelites began their journey, Exodus 13:17 tells us that “God” did not lead them through the most direct path. Why? We find the answer in the same verse, “lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” So how does this account apply to the lives of GLBTs? It is my opinion that we can relate to wilderness way and embrace it and not blame God for a journey we thought would take a few days or months, but instead seems like years. The simple answer is so we can realize the strength and power of God through building our character. God is the all-knowing God and God knew that although the Israelites cried out and wanted to get out of the house of bondage, Egypt, they would turn and go back at the first sign of war. In our cases, war can be understood as struggles, headaches, setbacks, etc. You see, after you have been in bondage for some time and leave, it is easy to look back and say you had it better under bondage when you deal with real life. It is easier to be told what to do, when to do it and how to do it. It is easier to be controlled when you have no control, but when you have control, it easier to blame and want to be controlled.
Think about, the wilderness is a place of desolation, decay, and death. There is nothing there desirable. It is a place with no distractions. But my dear brothers and sisters, I challenge us to think about from God’s perspective; we all need to go the “way of the wilderness” from time to time. The purpose is to build the strength and character needed to overcome life outside of our wildernesses, so we can leave the bondage mentality and will not yearn for the perceived comforts of bondage versus true freedom that we can find in the wilderness and beyond. Think of it this way, if you are in a wilderness, a blessing is on the other side, just ask what am I supposed to be learning, why wasn’t it time for this thing to come direct? God’s answer maybe wasn’t No, maybe it was Grow, then I will say Go. God knows how much you can handle and God might be saying there is more war on the direct route that you are not prepared to handle now. Let's get prepared.
Sometimes our paths take us in directions we had not anticipated. Those paths can be a more direct journey, meaning it was time; or it can be a round-about way where you feel that you are going in circles and nothing is really happens. But my dear brothers and sisters, something powerful is really happening if we allow it to takes it course. Once we finally reach the destination and come out on the other side, we will be more like Christ. Remember Jesus went the “way of the wilderness” before he entered his public ministry.
For this installment, I wanted to encourage you to recognize where you are at concerning various aspects of your life and as GLBT, it is important for us to not blame God for what may seem as delays or different paths, but to name it, embrace it, learn and grow from it so we can move forward more victorious. May God richly bless you wherever you find yourself – God is there.
